Design And Development of Smart Solar-Flower Water Pump System for Agricultural Field

The potential of solar energy that is so large in PAKISTAN can be a driving force for the use of renewable energy as a solution for energy needs. Government with the community can utilize and optimize this technology to increase the electrification ratio up to 100% in all corners of Pakistan. Becaus

Project Title

Design And Development of Smart Solar-Flower Water Pump System for Agricultural Field

Project Area of Specialization

Electrical/Electronic Engineering

Project Summary

The potential of solar energy that is so large in PAKISTAN can be a driving force for the use of renewable energy as a solution for energy needs. Government with the community can utilize and optimize this technology to increase the electrification ratio up to 100% in all corners of Pakistan. Because of its modular and practical nature, making this technology easy to  apply.  One  of the  latest  imported  products  that have  started  to  be offered  and  sold  in PAKISTAN but not yet widely used for solar power generation is the kind of smartflower. Before using the  product, it  is of  course very  important and  immediately to undertake  an in-depth study of the utilization, use, maintenance, repair, component supply and fabrication. The best way to know the above is through a review of the design and simulation. To meet this need, this summary presents a solar-smartflower design and then simulated using the facilities available in  the  solidwork  program.  Solid  simulation  express  is  a  tool  that  serves  to  create  power simulation of a design part modelling. With the simulation is very helpful at all to reduce errors in making design. Accurate or not a design created is also influenced by several other factors such as material objects, the silent part of the part, and the load given. The simulation is static simulation and body battery drop test, and based on the results of this simulation is known that the design results have been very satisfactory. The smart flower was named after its design, in which the solar cells are arranged on individual “petals” that open at the beginning of each day and look like a flower. After the sun sets, the petals of the smart flower fold up and the self-cleaning process begins. The smart flower system includes a dual-axis tracker that allows the petals to follow the sun throughthe sky throughout the day. According to smart flower’s survey, with this tracking feature, the smart flower system can generate 40% more electricity than a rooftop solar panel system of the same size. The smart flower system has the same solar power benefits as a regular solar system, as well as an integrated battery that provides more energy storage.  

Project Objectives

The system was designed for the benefits of various users and farmers. By using the IoT based irrigation system, it optimizes the usage of water by reducing wastage and human efforts. Proposed system is easy to implement and environment friendly solution for irrigating fields. The system was found to be successful when implemented for bore holes as they pump over the whole day. Solar pumps offer clean solutions with no danger of borehole contamination. The system has no maintenance and it also self-starting. The system can be used with application to provide energy for the pumping requirements for sprinkler irrigation. Even though there is a high capital investment required for this system to be implemented, the overall benefits are high and in long run this system is economical.

Project Implementation Method

The smartflower is a kinetic all-in-one system, which comprises the monitor, inverter, and control system in the cabinet of the unit. This solar PV system can be delivered, assembled, and installed in an hour or two. Additionally, the installation of smartflower can be done in any open space, and electricity can be generated by connecting it to a home or office.

Thereafter, connecting the unit to a home or office building’s electrical distribution system needs the skills of a licensed electrician. Additionally, considering that smartflower is a free-standing unit, with moving parts, the electrician or the installer need to trench up the installation site to connect it to the building’s power supply. Then, the installer will put a concrete slab to attach the smartflower for a strong foundation by using a ground screw system.

The next comes the Initial programming of the system, which is the work of a certified technician. The smartflower system has been tested under significant wind speed or hail conditions and has passed the test. 

In high-speed wind conditions, the smartflower is designed to self-protect before any problem occurs. If the wind speed reaches 30 mph, the smartflower panels automatically move into the horizontal or safety position to allow the wind to pass, though it still keeps producing energy. If the wind speed goes up to 39 mph or higher, the panels will automatically fold up and down into the second safety position. If a smartflower has been properly installed, it should stay in its closed and safety position, even in hurricane-level wind speed.

The installer will also give a briefing about the smartflower’s tracking movement during the day and its self-cleaning process. Especially for the winter season, consumers should know that the smartflower can remove snow before it builds up. If there is heavy snowfall and snow builds up during the night while the smartflower is closed, it may be necessary to remove the snow in front of the closed unit before the panels start operating in the morning.

During the installation, warranties apply, and for proper installation, a certified technician should check each unit, despite being fully assembled before delivery. Placing the system may require a large forklift or crane.

If consumers are interested in a solar system that can be easily installed, ground-mounted, and moved and not concerned about meeting 100% of a home or office building’s electricity needs, the smartflower could be a good option.

Benefits of the Project

We have gained the result that the system is more efficient as it includes the dual-axis solar tracking principle in it. Also, the system is smarter and safer as it contains the sensors such as wind sensor, soil moisture sensor, rainwater sensor and LDRs. Therefore, whenever there is a high wind or high raining, the solar flower unfolds its petals and hence protects the system from sudden damage. Since the IoT is used in this project, the project is usable in the remote areas. Due to the use of the soil moisture sensor, we could turn on or off the water pump. Here, it is a smarter energy management system with strategy and planning based on real-time data collection and processing. This technology gave a high-tech makeover to the agriculture industry.

Advantages and disadvantages of this system include:

Advantages:

• Size of the system is small.

• System has a dual-axis tracking technology which helps in maximizing the solar energy absorption by continuously tracking the sun.

• No fuel burning in this system and therefore any pollution.

• The maintenance cost is very low.

• Because the use of solar energy is not limited, it can be used for longer period of time.

Technical Details of Final Deliverable

The design of the solar tracker system can be classified into three sections . There is the input stage that is composed of sensors and potentiometers, a program in embedded software in the microcontroller and lastly the driving circuit that has the servo motor. The input stage considers with two light dependent resistors (LDR) and that are assembled to form a voltage divider circuit. A ‘C’ program loaded into the Atmega328P or any other microcontroller forms the embedded software. The all components are mounted in the metallic frame. The three stages are designed independently before being joined into one system. This approach similar to stepwise refinement in modular programming has been employed as it ensures an accurate and logical approach which is straight forward and easy to understand. This also ensures that if there are any errors, they are independently considered and corrected.The main purpose to write the paper is to satisfy two main objectives:

• Design a solar system which can track the solar UV light for solar panels through the day.

• Design a tracking system for the solar panel to increase the efficiency of the system than the ordinary solar system.

The system is designed so that the sun's rays fall vertically on the solar panels to get the most solar energy. This is harnessed into the electrical power. Maximum energy is obtained between 1200 h and 1400 h, with the peak being around midday. At this time, the sun is directly overhead. At the same time, the least energy will be required to move the panel, which will further increase the system efficiency. The system is designed to address the challenge of low power, accurate and economical microcontroller-basedtracking system which is implemented within the allocated time and with the availableresources. It is supposed to track the sun’s movement in the sky. In order to save power,it is supposed to sleep during the night by getting back into a horizontal position. There isimplementation of an algorithm that solves the motor control that is then written into C-program.

The main supply is fed to the load under normal conditions. When the main supply gets shut down, the supply from the battery connected to the system will be fed to the load to fulfill the desired output. The battery is switched to the circuit by switching the relay. The main part of the system is that we are using two sources for charging the battery.

The output voltage of the solar panel is kept at 12 V and is compared with the main voltage supply. When the solar panel voltage goes beyond 12 V, the battery starts charging on a solar energy. Transformer is used to step down the AC voltage 230V/12-0-12V. It is fed to the rectifier circuit which converts AC to pulsating DC.Relay switches the operations as per the instructions are given in the microcontroller programming. According to the relay, the motor will operate.

Final Deliverable of the Project

Hardware System

Core Industry

Energy

Other Industries

Agriculture , Others

Core Technology

Robotics

Other Technologies

Internet of Things (IoT), Others

Sustainable Development Goals

Affordable and Clean Energy

Required Resources

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